Official 2022 HHN 31 - Horror is Universal

[SquashBanana]

Have there been any sightings of the death eaters in diagon alley? We've been there the last two nights and have yet to see them. Do they only come out at certain times?

 

[lisam70]

Do you know if Gringotts is opened until midnight¿

Someone recently posted copy of a schedule TM gave them. It says gringotts open til 12:30

 

[Jlane5000]

Hi I was hoping for a bit of guidance with stay and scream. I’ve done it once before in 2019 in finnegans holding area and it sounds like it’s changed loads. From what I remember we were just kept in the pen, free to travel back and forth to the bar but not ‘roam’ around the New York area. When they released us it was a gentle walk (not a stampede) to the house and it was effectively a walk on, they didn’t line us up before the house was open. I think I’ve remembered it right but not 100%.

So it sounds like now that people are getting into the the stay and scream area and joining a queue within the holding area for whichever house they are wanting to get on first. Is this correct? Is this now the best way to utilise stay and scream? If we chose to not join a queue and relax in the holding area until the houses open would we be at a massive disadvantage?

I’m just hoping someone can explain their strategy for using stay and scream best whilst also not just standing in a long queue the entire time (we also have EP in case that changes someone’s advice). Sorry for the waffley post, this is only my 2nd time at HHN and it sounds quite different.

 

[ThistleMae]

I have commented on some others posts but thought I'd make a separate post. This was given to me by a team member. It shows times that houses open. Makes it easier to plan for S&S.
View attachment 700956

So, the houses all open at different times? I had no idea. Do they do this to try and disperse the crowds?

 

[shh]

Hi I was hoping for a bit of guidance with stay and scream. I’ve done it once before in 2019 in finnegans holding area and it sounds like it’s changed loads. From what I remember we were just kept in the pen, free to travel back and forth to the bar but not ‘roam’ around the New York area. When they released us it was a gentle walk (not a stampede) to the house and it was effectively a walk on, they didn’t line us up before the house was open. I think I’ve remembered it right but not 100%.

So it sounds like now that people are getting into the the stay and scream area and joining a queue within the holding area for whichever house they are wanting to get on first. Is this correct? Is this now the best way to utilise stay and scream? If we chose to not join a queue and relax in the holding area until the houses open would we be at a massive disadvantage?

I’m just hoping someone can explain their strategy for using stay and scream best whilst also not just standing in a long queue the entire time (we also have EP in case that changes someone’s advice). Sorry for the waffley post, this is only my 2nd time at HHN and it sounds quite different.

We also went in 2019 - late Oct. When we were in the New York area S&S, there were two roped lanes inside the S&S pen- people were lining up by 4:30 for each, depending upon which house they wanted to see. It was a long, hot wait and plenty of people just milled around and didn't get in those lines.

But yes - to answer your question, I do think they were at a disadvantage, as they were at the tail end of S&S - so all those masses of people who DID line up were ahead of them.

I guess it just depends how much that matters to you. You'll probably still get an edge over coming into the park at 6pm, but for me, if I'm going to bother doing S&S, I don't want to be at the very end of the line.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Hi All!

Has anyone seen if they are offering an "After 10 PM Express pass" this year? We are only planning to go one night, would love to get all the houses done.

TYIA!

Last night, Saturday 9/10, there was a sign advertising after 11 express pass for sale. I did not stop to ask about pricing.

 

[wdwrule]

Have there been any sightings of the death eaters in diagon alley? We've been there the last two nights and have yet to see them. Do they only come out at certain times?

I know Death Eaters are at Hollywood’s HHN but not yet, if at all, at Orlando’s HHN.

 

[ClapYourHands]

I know Death Eaters are at Hollywood’s HHN but not yet, if at all, at Orlando’s HHN.

Last year, they were wandering in Hogsmeade in IoA, but were not at HHN. I have not been over to IOA to check this year, but can confirm they are not in Diagon Alley.

 

[lisam70]

Last year, they were wandering in Hogsmeade in IoA, but were not at HHN. I have not been over to IOA to check this year, but can confirm they are not in Diagon Alley.

Was in Hogsmeade last night no Death Eaters saw them last year towards the end of September

 

[ShadeDK]

I can only speak for the New York S&S area. It’s somewhat different than the 2019 set up (where they mostly herded everyone into one of two wide lanes next to the park and facing Mummy). This year there are official lines/queues in the S&S area for Halloween and Spirits of the Coven (and, IIRC, there actually are two lines for Halloween). The line for Halloween snakes through the S&S area - opening weekend the line was winding around all the way back to Louie’s. There are some barricades up to try and keep things orderly - with the street in front of Mummy (where for the floats that go with Sweet Revenge are used) serving as a staging area. When the lines release they walk them through this area.

Lots of people still wandering around - hitting Finnegans, Meetz Meats and other booths. Still arguably the best area to stretch out, find some shade and wait. If you want to be first for either house, however, then you’ll be in line right as the S&S area opens.

One suggested trick if you want to casually enjoy S&S and still have a great spot in line for a house: head to the corner of the S&S area close to the Tribute Store around 5:30-5:40. As they finish releasing Halloween, they’ll strike the barricades and let everyone go. You can then head right across the street to line up or enter the queues for Dead Mans Pier or Chupacabra. Neither of those houses have official S&S queues, so no line to worry about until everyone is released. Did that twice last weekend and both times was within the first group of 50 or so people for DMP. Only potential drawbacks are if they’re late in taking down the barriers (and people finishing other houses get there first) or if they don’t open the houses on time.

 

[wdwrule]

Last year, they were wandering in Hogsmeade in IoA, but were not at HHN. I have not been over to IOA to check this year, but can confirm they are not in Diagon Alley.

Oh that’s right! We missed them somehow last year but heard of it.

 

[AllyElly]

I tried looking but couldn’t find it - does anyone have a list of which houses open for each of the stay and scream holding areas?

 

[lisam70]

To answer my own question-what is the wait time for Finnegans before hHN it’s 45-60 min.

 

[SquashBanana]

I know Death Eaters are at Hollywood’s HHN but not yet, if at all, at Orlando’s HHN.

That's it. I overlooked that it was at Hollywood not Orlando. I was so confused when the article said that forbidden journey and flight of the hippogriff remained open during HHN. Makes total sense now.

 

[ShadeDK]

One suggested trick if you want to casually enjoy S&S and still have a great spot in line for a house: head to the corner of the S&S area close to the Tribute Store around 5:30-5:40. As they finish releasing Halloween, they’ll strike the barricades and let everyone go. You can then head right across the street to line up or enter the queues for Dead Mans Pier or Chupacabra. Neither of those houses have official S&S queues, so no line to worry about until everyone is released. Did that twice last weekend and both times was within the first group of 50 or so people for DMP. Only potential drawbacks are if they’re late in taking down the barriers (and people finishing other houses get there first) or if they don’t open the houses on time.

Apologies to anyone who followed my advice last night. Apparently they generally released the NY S&S around 5:45 after the Halloween line cleared and people were able to queue up for Dead Mans Pier/Chupacabra. The soundstage, however, was having problems and both houses had delayed opening (closed until around 7:30 per reports). Really messed those up trying to hit houses early. As a bonus, however, they cleared the lines and gave everyone waiting a one-time express ticket to come back later when they opened.

 

[lisam70]

First HHN was awesome !! The amount of work, the attention to detail and the energy and enthusiasm of the scare actors is just incredible. I’m only sorry it took me so long to attend it will not be our last for sure. The only wrench in the plan was Dead Mans Pier and Chupacabra not opening til like 7:15. We lined up for Halloween around 4:30 I think if you want to be one of the first in maybe have to line up earlier but we still did Halloween, Coven, Legends, Bugs, Descendents and Dead Mans Pier by around 8:20 then rode RRR and the 9:30 Fuel show. Then had snacks and enjoyed Diagon Alley without the usual wall to wall crowds. Watched Ghoulish and walked thru the scare zones multiple times. Our favorites were Conjure and Graveyard. My favorite house was Descendents man they got me good I was crawling over my husband to get out !! Could have done more houses but I was pooped and did everything I wanted left around 12:30.

 

[Lyricallie]

So we dipped our toe in, went in after 9pm after dinner(it was our change over from Disney day so we had been up early). Even then we still did most of the scare zones and legends collide and descendents of destruction. I'm an absolute wuss but powered through. The scarecrow zone was definitely the scariest for me as it was so narrow! I loved loved the light show the music was amazing!

But jeez I see what some people were saying (on another site) about there being lots of drunk young people. And I'm only 29! I definitely was feeling old haha

Two more night of it before my holiday is over!

 

[DuskKodesh]

Had a wrench thrown in my plans but got my flight and tix. The wrench was the 6-house lights-on tour not having two slots for most of the days I'd planned. Actually only one day and one time was available so we pounced on it. 8:15 am Thurs Oct 27th... but then because of that being early and our other days being Mon-Tues we... had to schedule our single day HHN ticket for that same night.
The plan: Wake up, grab a pastry for breakfast, take the tour, head back after the tour to the hotel, nap, get up and go to HHN, then die I guess. XD I can recover Friday on the flight home.

 

[SquashBanana]

Just got back from a long weekend trip. We went 9/8 to 9/11 with a ROF pass with no add-ons. As a 99% HHN newbie, (went a couple of times in the 90s as a kid), I had an amazing time and would love to make this a yearly trip.

Spoiler Free Thoughts

Ho. Ly. Cow. The walking. All the “I told you so’s” don’t mean anything until you’ve experienced it yourself.

On Thursday night, posted wait times vs actual wait times were all over the place. Dead Man’s Pier was posted 35 min, actual was around 60. This was around 10 pm when waits hit a peak. After that, most houses were a walk-in(?) despite being posted at 20 minutes. After 1 am, nearly everything was a walk-in. Express pass after 10 pm on Thursday was completely unnecessary. On the other two nights wait times were pretty accurate during peak times and mostly overestimated during the last couple hours.

Despite my earlier posts, we opted not to do S&S because we did so much more than we anticipated on Thursday night. On Friday, we caught a movie at CityWalk, and on Saturday we spent some extra time in IoA before heading over after the initial rush let in.

We did every house twice except for Dead Man's Pier which we did 3 times. Here are my thoughts on a 1 to 5 rating:

Spoiler: Ratings of attractions visible with commentary blurred

Houses

Blumhouse - 3/5 - Enjoyed the 2 in 1 aspect and some good scares in the 2nd half. Not bad, but not my favorite either.

Bugs Eaten Alive - 3/5 - This was the one I was most excited about, but didn't live up to my expectations. I was expecting more live bugs and walked away a little underwhelmed.

Chubacabra - 4/5 - One of the surprise hits for me. I loved the set design, especially the first room, and got some of the better scares out of this one.

Dead Man's Pier - 5/5 - Breathtaking, beautiful set design and immersion. The only house we did 3 times during our trip.

Descendants of Destruction - 3/5 - Decent, but not great house. Honorable mention goes to the SA standing at the grill. Maybe my favorite SA of all the houses.

Halloween - 5/5 - Best scares hands down, probably my favorite house of all. This house legit scared me to the point I wanted out of there.

Hellblock Horror - 2/5 - Not a huge fan, simple as that. Not terrible, but other houses were far superior. Probably my least favorite.

Spirits of the Coven - 2/5 - Not a great house. Not bad, just doesn't live up to the standards set by some of the other houses.

Universal Monsters Collide - 4/5 - Loved the set as soon as you walk in with the statue and full moon. Decent scares as well. Especially enjoyed the projection on the front of the building.

The Weekend - 4/5 - Not a fan of The Weekend but a fun house nonetheless. Loved the set design and scares were above average.

Scare Zones (Too tired for commentary, some were better than others. The end. Haha)

Conjure in the Dark - 3/5
Graveyard - 3/5
Horror of Halloween - 4/5
Scarecrow - 4/5
Sweet Revenge - 2/5

Shows

Halloween Nightmare Fuel Wildfire - ?/5 - This was not for me at all. If this is your cup of tea, then it's probably enjoyable, but this show was a bit raunchy for me.

Ghoulish! A Halloween Tale - 3/5 - Cute, but REALLY loud and hard to understand the narrator. I enjoy the regular nighttime show much more. Worth seeing once if you can sneak in a few minutes before showtime, but I wouldn't spend a whole lot of time trying to secure an optimal seat.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Apologies to anyone who followed my advice last night. Apparently they generally released the NY S&S around 5:45 after the Halloween line cleared and people were able to queue up for Dead Mans Pier/Chupacabra. The soundstage, however, was having problems and both houses had delayed opening (closed until around 7:30 per reports). Really messed those up trying to hit houses early. As a bonus, however, they cleared the lines and gave everyone waiting a one-time express ticket to come back later when they opened.

It had a ripple effect with other houses, too. We rope dropped Bugs and Descendants, and went over to Blumhouse, which usually still has a low wait at that point (it was 15 or 20 minutes at that time on Saturday), but it was at 45 already, with all the other open studio houses having spiked waits, too. All the people usually eaten up by those two lines seemed to redistribute to the surrounding houses. But whatever, we waited our 40ish minutes at Blumhouse because at least that house is worth the wait, and we knew the line wouldn’t drop until super late.

Then we walked over to ask when Chupacabra might be opening. The TM said, no idea, and just then another TM let someone walk into the express line, and my TM said, “I guess now,” so we hightailed it through the queue, and arrived right behind another couple to be the first of the night. My sons got ahead of me, and there was no one behind me, so I had the unusual experience of being alone in some of the rooms. Then we hopped into the Dead Man’s Pier line while it still said 15, and it really was only 15. By the time we got out, both houses had waits posted around an hour.

Then when we were exiting, we saw Mummy had opened with a posted 20 minute wait, which increased to 50 after we entered the queue. We waited a little more than 20, but the result was that by a bit past 8, we had done 5 houses and gone on Mummy without express pass or stay and scream.

So after a messed up start, we made up for it with serendipitous timing. The only thing was Dead Man’s Pier was missing several scare actors, including a key one in the last room. It was our 4th walk through of the weekend, so the omissions were really obvious to us. I feel kind of bad for the people who were using their one-time express or waiting 55 minutes, but not getting the full experience. It was still beautiful and haunting, but not at its top form.